Toyota GT86 1:12 scale

[PlasticGear]

Hello,

I was surprised I can't find any GT86 lego technic model despite being a very popular car, so here is my shot. Also this is my first time trying to make a technic scaled model 

It a manual 1:12 scale model featuring :

-opening doors

-full indepdent suspensions with rear multi link design with toe in dynamic like the real car

-opening hood with easy swapable engine (for real tunner)

-detailed interior with working steering wheel

Below the video showcasing the model

 

The most iconic factory color blue is unfortunately not feasible in LEGO, as key parts like the front wheel arches aren't available (yet hopefuly) in blue, not even from third-party brands. Fortunately, the GT86 also came in an OEM orange

The model is slightly wider compared to true 1:12 scale, I needed to fit the rear suspension. I was especially keen on replicating the rear multi-link suspension system, though I wasn’t able to fully achieve it. Aligning the wheels with the differential while incorporating angled crossbeams was extremely difficult. Still, I managed to build an approximation : a hybrid solution using both System bricks and Technic parts. It looks much cooler than the basic LEGO double wishbone setup. The wheel toes in as the suspension compresses, just like the real car.

The front of the car looks slightly flat compared to the real thing, but extending it by one stud actually made it worse. At least, I couldn’t find a satisfying in-between. That’s not the case at the rear, which turned out very close to the original and looks great (in my opinion)

Instructions are on their way to rebrickable 

exemple of engine swap :

 

Please let me know your thought on the model

[bruh]

Wow! Looks really good! I like the accuracy with the rear suspension. Do you have photos of the suspension?

[rm8]

Very good widebody Toyota!

[zoo]

5 hours ago, PlasticGear said:

"Fortunately, the GT86 also came in an OEM orange"

"The front of the car looks slightly flat compared to the real thing, but extending it by one stud actually made it worse. At least, I couldn’t find a satisfying in-between. That’s not the case at the rear, which turned out very close to the original and looks great (in my opinion)"

"Please let me know your thought on the model"

Well done with the model. I understand that it is very difficult to replicate the car in this relatively small scale using LEGO Technic.

Your profile picture looks a bit off but it is hard to pinpoint why exactly. Part of it has to do with the camera being very close to the car for the photo, which hides a bit of the front and rear. But as you already pointed out, the front is a bit square and should be more pointy so to speak. The rear I think also could have been a stud or so longer, and I also think the front axle should be moved one stud further forward (to make more space between a-pillar and wheel).

Another thing is that it looks a bit weird seing the cylinders of the boxer engine so high up in the engine bay when they in reality are the lowest parts of the whole engine. But I understand that it had to be made this way just to be able to fit the front axle at all. :)

Still cool to see a scale model of the GT86 in Technic and I agree that there should be more of them judging by how popular they are in the stance/tuner crowd and the fact that japanese cars in general are all the rage nowdays.

[2GodBDGlory]

Hey, really nice job! I agree that it's strange not to see more models of this sweet car! I think the bodywork shaping looks really good for a first try at a scaled car, though I would agree that the front looks a little flat. I too would like to see more pictures of the rear suspension, since that seems like the most interesting part of the car!

[PlasticGear]

Thanks for your feedback !

About the suspension

@bruh @2GodBDGlory

I ended-up with a tripod configuration with the lower arm taking the load and giving the up and down movement, the upper arm giving the toe-in action and the middle arm just locking the camber angle (first picture for arm reference)

The hard part was to line up the the wheel axle with the differential axle while keeping the toe in action. That's why I ended up with system parts in the build.

Finally eagle eyed reader might spot a cut ball end. It also works without cutting it, but it's cleanner when cut.

I might made a short video about it to show it in detail.

 

About the bodywork

@zoo

15 hours ago, zoo said:

Your profile picture looks a bit off but it is hard to pinpoint why exactly. Part of it has to do with the camera being very close to the car for the photo, which hides a bit of the front and rear. But as you already pointed out, the front is a bit square and should be more pointy so to speak

You get it, it is both.

15 hours ago, zoo said:

front is a bit square and should be more pointy so to speak. The rear I think also could have been a stud or so longer, and I also think the front axle should be moved one stud further forward (to make more space between a-pillar and wheel).

I made the model using scaled real car blueprints, and excpet the A-pillar which goes further, the front/end/wheelbase are accurate to scale. I think that's how it translate to Lego. I beleive it needs some visual trick to make the proportion looks better, even it doesn't correspond to the "real" blueprint. With narrower front the car would look way less blocky I totaly agree, I made some design concession to fit the suspensions.

15 hours ago, zoo said:

boxer engine so high up

Totally agree, and taking a closer look, I definitly see ways to improve it 

[2GodBDGlory]

Wow, that suspension is really cool! Several levels above your average Technic design! You talk about the design casually as if we all know what you're talking about, but most of us probably don't.

Are you familiar with this part, new this year?

I haven't acquired any yet, and it's still a little expensive to find, but I imagine you could make your links a bit stronger and lower-friction using them!

[EDIT:] Turns out those parts are now available direct from Lego for ~60 cents CAD, so I just ordered 14 of them!

Edited August 11 by 2GodBDGlory

[PlasticGear]

On 8/9/2025 at 4:17 PM, 2GodBDGlory said:

Wow, that suspension is really cool! Several levels above your average Technic design!

thanks ! To get the general idea, in a multi link suspension each link allow you to control a rotation/translation of the wheel while being under compression (the camber/the toe and so on). The classic lego suspension design (double wishbone) does not allow this freedom, and is less performant for real car usage (but way enought for lego scale). It is not easy to replicate this in Lego, especially in a Lego scale. If you want to go deeper, nicjasno made nice video on YouTube covering the subject.

 

On 8/9/2025 at 4:17 PM, 2GodBDGlory said:

Are you familiar with this part

I did not get my hand on it yet, but this part is so gifted. It would have influence the design significantly, however the car was already in its final design stage when the part was released.

[PlasticGear]

 

On 8/9/2025 at 4:17 PM, 2GodBDGlory said:

You talk about the design casually as if we all know what you're talking about, but most of us probably don't

@2GodBDGlory here the in depth look of the rear suspension design (I can't send private message so I post here).

 

[zoo]

Your suspension design differs a bit from the real car when it comes to placement of the arms, but it is very interesting non the less. Inspiring work, well done!

[2GodBDGlory]

On 8/17/2025 at 9:02 AM, PlasticGear said:

 

@2GodBDGlory here the in depth look of the rear suspension design (I can't send private message so I post here).

 

Cool, thanks for sharing!

[damian_kane_iv]

Model looks great as-is, but I think the front end would benefit from custom fenders and not the "pre-made" ones. Suspension is excellently done at that scale, but I would be personally worried about it falling apart

[PlasticGear]

On 8/17/2025 at 8:04 PM, zoo said:

Your suspension design differs a bit from the real

Yes, I struggle to recreate the angle and attach point of the original. The main challenge was to align the wheel axle with the differential axle. Thanks !

 

On 8/20/2025 at 4:08 PM, damian_kane_iv said:

benefit from custom fenders

I take note for a futur maybe improved version, thanks !

[PlasticGear]

Hi, I made an RC performance version of the car (that's always have been the project).

I take your feedback and have successfully improved the front end by a lot ! (thanks to all contributor) The car being "wider" than it should, I made it so it feels like a racing bodykit.

for now It is orange but I am looking to swap to a "raceier" color. I might need to get 3 party brick because the lego panel color is pretty limited.

The car is powered by 2 buwizz motor, 1 servo and 2 motors for adjustable suspension height adjustement (independant front and rear). It is pretty fast and melts plastic, meaning that's enought.

What are your thought ?

 

[zoo]

1 hour ago, PlasticGear said:

What are your thought ?

Very well done! I think that new front made wonders to the profile shot. Before it was almost like the front and back looked the same in your profile picture. Now the front end looks a lot more destinct. The wing at the rear problably helps the new look even further.

The side skirts look a bit incoherent with the mix of black and orange pieces if I am to nitpick. :)

Regarding the colour, it would be interesting seing it in white with red wheels or vice versa, or maybe black with pearl gold wheels.

Edited September 13 by zoo